The Companion

Dark Horse Theatre —Onstage at Pantages

In a dystopian near future, Owen nears the end of 10-years of solitary confinement for a “crime” that in today’s world probably would have resulted in a suspended sentence with the help of a reasonably
skilled lawyer. Despite this draconian sentencing system, the warden assigns him a “companion” to mitigate the effects of years of solitude broken only by occasional visits from a psychologist and almost constant intrusions from a slightly off-kilter prison guard.

On opening night the cast acquitted themselves well but were a bit tentative at times. More familiarity with the space should solve that problem. I was particularly impressed with Sami Desiree’s performance as Alexis, although I would have to give too much away to say why.

I will say that as the program says, the play explores what it means to be human, and some characters, whether through performance choices or writing, seemed less than human. Although I found this to be an enjoyable and intriguing piece of theatre, one choice that bothered me was that often when the
characters were in an earnest conversation, the speaker would face the audience instead of the person he or she was addressing. They therefore seemed to be making speeches instead of interacting.

Playwright Mike Seccombe has created an interesting world and given his characters some vital issues to confront. I found some details of this world difficult to integrate, but not so much that I lost contact with the main characters. I look forward to his next effort.

Kevin Longfield